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Tuesday, December 31, 2013

And so it has come to an end. I started with Capricorn, so that would make this the last one.

This post is also late as the month of Saggitarius ended ten days ago, but I've had day after day of family obligations. Forgive me?

So if naming your child Sagittarius is not your style, here are some other ideas:

1. Archer. Probably the most obvious option, this one has been getting increasingly more popular.

2. Bowman. I haven't seen this one used as a first name, but it means the exact same thing as Archer.

3. Chiron. The name of the centaur that the constellation of Sagittarius represents. Chiron is known for being a father figure and teacher to many boys in mythology, including Achilles. His name is Greek for "hand."

4. Arrow. Another archery related name. I've seen this used a few times on little boys.

5. Bow. A less obvious and less used archer related name.

6. Katniss. I'm not kidding. The scientific name for this plant is Saggitaria.

Friday, December 13, 2013

I have another request for baby name advice and this one is for a little Leonardis. This baby is due on March 12, so I'm still on time!

The sex of the baby is unknown, but it doesn't really matter because the family has a preference for unisex names. The parents are hobo style travelers (he hops freight trains, she hitch hikes) so a name with a sense of adventure is key. Because the baby will be a Pisces, Mama Leonardis is also looking for water names. She prefers the first, middle, and last names to all have a different amount of syllables. Here are the names that they like so far:

Farren/FaronOceanSurrenderAsaGypsy/GipsiSilenceThorn

So far the winner is Farren because it rhymes with the mother's name (Lauren) and it means "traveler" (more on that later), but she has a hard time finding middle names to fit.

They're lifestyle is so fascinating! Their adventurous ways made me immediately think of Venture, Meander, Wilde/Wilder, Sojourner/Sojourn, Journey, and Odyssey. Venture Leonardis. Journey Leonardis. Meander Leonardis. I've even seen Traveler used as a name, but perhaps that's a little too obvious.

Peregrine/Peregrin also sprung into my mind very quickly. It means "pilgrim." Peregrine Leonardis. Pippin is a variant, if you don't mind the hobbit association. Rumer could also work, as it references pilgrims going to Rome. Rumer Leonardis. Rover means "wanderer," if you can get over the dog association. Wallace/Wallis means "foreigner." Mercury is a god of travelers, and even though he's a man the -ee sound at the end would make it okay for a girl. Or how about Atlas? I think a family like yours could pull of Atlas on a girl.

It might also help to look at famous explorers for inspiration. Kit (Carson), Meriwether (Lewis), and Osa (Johnson) are ones that seem a bit more unisex.

Another name that rhymes with Lauren is Claren. Claren Leonardis. Koren, Oren, and Maren also come to mind. Or how about just Wren? Wren Leonardis.

Asa is a style outlier as it doesn't appear to have anything to do with travel or water. It's an Old Testament name, but it's also a name found in several African cultures, Japan, Indonesia, and Portugal. I'm not sure what to make of it honestly. In any case some names with a similar style are Avi, Noa, Levi, Kaya, Mose, and Zev.

But to be honest, I have a strong suspicion that Lauren already knows the baby's name: it's Farren. I've done some research and found that Farren/Faron is an Old English name meaning "handsome servant" and could have possibly been an old occupational surname for people who herded oxen. I was concerned that I was going to have to break the news that the favorite name doesn't mean what Mama thinks it means. But then I saw that Farren/Faron could also be a variant of Faramond, an Old English boy's name meaning "traveler's protection." Faramond might also be a possibility. Faramond Leonardis.

Still, I'm pretty certain that Farren is the baby's name. She just hasn't found the right middle name. Part of the problem might be the desire to have all the names containing a different number of syllables. It's a bit too stringent a requirement in my eyes. Let's try it out by saying this name out loud:

Noa Faramond LeonardisPeregrine Kai LeonardisFaro Horizon LeonardisGypsy Afon LeonardisProsper Avi Leonardis
The more combos I make the more it feels like Farren is THE name. So, Mama Leonardis, I hope this helped.

Thursday, December 12, 2013

People! I am so far behind on requests that I have two requests for name advice for upcoming pregnancy that are months old! This one in particular came to me in July for a baby that was due...early December. Ugh. Blog fail.

For the sake of fun and creativity, let us pretend that I am not a moron and that this is actually vaguely on time. I'll start with Chloe and, once again, I'm very sorry. They have one daughter already: Pepper Karen Pnina Albertine. Karen is a family name, Pnina is her Hebrew name, and Albertine is a French name honoring the grandmother's origin. The last name rhymes with "almond." The gender of the new baby was at the time unknown. She was looking for a gentle name that evoked plants and the high dessert. They've thought a lot about Fox, but that seemed way too "playful and wily."

Pepper makes me think of Forest, which could work for a boy or a girl. Or Cedar. Or Cypress. I like Pepper and Cypress for two little girls. Bryony, Clover, Juniper, Meadow, and Fawn all have potential.

If it's a boy I really like Hawthorne. Pepper and Hawthorne. Or Sage. I love Sage on a boy. Others that could work are Ash, Cyprian, Indio, Hickory, and Harvest.

The attraction to Fox makes me think of Foxbelle, which is another term for the Foxglove plant. I've heard of Foxwell and Foxworth used for boys. Reynard is a fox name that also incorporates France.

But it sounds like you want to stay away from that rascal fox energy altogether. Perhaps birds are more your thing. Bird/Birdie, Lark, Wren, Sparrow, Avi, Dove, Finch, Jay, Nightingale, Paloma, Swan, and Whimbrel work great with Pepper.

You're probably not going to like Wolf, but how about Lupin/Lupine? It's a plant name too. Pepper and Lupine.

The idea of the desert makes me think of Sirocco immediately, but perhaps it's too energetic. The desert also makes me think of shades of yellow like Saffron, Goldenrod, and Sunglow. It also makes me think of shades of brown like Copper, Tawny, and Fallow.

The attraction to Hebrew names makes me think of Zohara, Adalia, Seraphim, Zipporah, Zilpah, Salome, Tobias, Enoch, Gideon, Gershom, Malachi, Nathaniel, Ishmael, Ira, and Jethro. These will also help give the name a desert feel.

Albertine makes me think of Marcel/Marceline. Or Genevieve. Or Phillipa. Eponine is daring while still being gentle. You can also use Capucine, Celeste/Celestine, Clemence, Clotilde, Delphine, Florence, Gisele, Noemie, Ophelie, Patrice, Raphaelle, Sabine, Zephyrine, and Violette for girls. For boys I like Anatole, Auguste, Clovis, Honore, Isidore, Jules, Laurent, Phillipe, Sylvain, and Theo.Valentine could work for either gender.

Chloe didn't mention if there were any family names that she wanted to incorporate so I can't weigh in there.

Finally, here are some combinations. Somehow I don't think I have to worry about it being a mouthful considering the first child's name. I am assuming that you want to include a Hebrew, French, and nature name into the child's name:

Lupine Zipporah RaphaelleCypress Zohara OphelieLark Salome ValentineDelphine Goldenrod SeraphimWhimbrel Jethro IsidoreHawthorne Ishmael PhillipeWren Tobias LaurentTheo Hickory Auguste
So that is my very, very, very late collection of ideas that will probably not help the requester at all on this point, but I hope they appreciate the thought anyway. There's always the possibility that the baby was born today.

I am so behind on the requests. Saranel requested Antigone a while ago, so let's start with that.

Antigone (pronounced "ahn-TIH-goh-nee") is a Greek name meaning "against birth." The name suggests a lot of other figurative meanings. One of which is "against men," as the mythical Antigone defied the masculine authority common in Ancient Greek culture. It could also be interpreted as "unbending."

Antigone is the daughter of Jocosta and Oedipus, so she's a product of incest. The most famous myth regarding Antigone is a tragic one. After Oedipus' death, the kingdom of Thebes was left for his sons to rule. The plan was that they would take turns being the ruler, but Eteocles wanted all the power to himself. He cast out his brother Polynices, who set up an army to overthrow him. The battle wound up killing both brothers.

Creon, Jocosta's brother and Antigone's uncle, decided that Polynices was a traitor to Thebes. It was forbidden to provide any burial for his body, and instead it would be left out to rot and be eaten by animals. But Antigone ignored Creon's orders and buried her brother herself. She was captured and brought to Creon. There are various different endings to this story. In one, Antigone is walled up in a cave and left to die. In another, Creon orders Antigone's fiancé, Haimon, to take her and kill her. Haimon disobeys and steals her away where they eventually have a son named Maeon.

Apparently this particular myth strikes a cord with people. It has been quite popular as the years have gone by. It is the subject of many plays and operas. It is worth noting that there are two other Antigone's in Greek mythology but their stories are nowhere near as popular.

But it doesn't appear to have caught on as a given name. Not in America, at any rate. Nevertheless, there are a few real life namesakes. Antigone of Macedon and Antigone of Epirus were ancient noblewomen. Antigone Plantagenet of Gloucester was another noblewoman and the granddaughter of Henry IV of England. Most recently there is Antigone Kefala, an Australian poet.

Antigone is a heroine in ancient lore, and for that reason it should make an excellent namesake.

Sunday, December 1, 2013

It's the holiday season! A time in which we are thinking about getting gifts for our loved ones. So it's the perfect time to look for some gift-related names.

It should come as no surprise that I love Dora names. Dora is Greek for "gift." Dora is used as a standalone name nowadays, but traditionally it is more of a nickname for an infinite number of other names.

I'll admit that I've never actually read any source in which, say, Musidore is referenced as an official name. But I figured that since there is a Theodora and a Theodore, a Isadora and a Isadore, that it is not an illogical assumption to think a Musidore has existed somewhere. I only did that a few times on this list. Even if it has never existed and I just invented it, I love it anyway.

So here are some great Dora names to choose from:Adora/Adore. "A gift."